Row over a £20 debt sparked knife attack on disabled man
Victim was repeatedly stabbed
VIOLENT Jason Perks repeatedly stabbed a vulnerable man – over a £20 debt.
The 32-year-old asked his victim for the cash and they agreed to meet later that day.
But Stoke-on-trent Crown Court heard Perks repeatedly punched his victim before stabbing him with a knife. He has now been jailed for 18 months.
Prosecutor William Douglas-jones said Perks contacted his victim at 4.30pm on November 4, 2021 and asked for £20 he was owed. It was agreed he would be paid in person later that day.
Mr Douglas-jones said: “About six hours later the man was in a friend’s vehicle waiting for Perks. Perks arrived and without warning he opened the door and began to punch the man repeatedly. The man’s tooth was chipped.
“Perks grabbed the man’s clothing and began to pull him where he knew would be very painful due to the man’s disability as he has rods in his back.
“Perks focused on the man’s arms and legs. The defendant pulled a knife out and repeatedly stabbed the complainant, while saying, ‘You are ******* done.’”
The court heard the victim was left with a jaw injury, a wound to his upper arm, two wounds to his left lower leg and three superficial slash wounds to the same area. He also had a chipped tooth and a grazed neck.
In a victim statement, the man said he had the money to pay Perks but it got out of control. He said: “He knows I have rods in my back. He stabbed me in the lower legs. He knows, because of my disability, I am not able to reach that far to protect myself.”
Perks, of St John’s Road, Biddulph, pleaded guilty to wounding and possession of a bladed article. James Kumar, mitigating, said Perks is remorseful. He said: “He is completely ashamed of his actions.”
He said Perks has not committed any other offences in the two years since this incident and he has no ongoing issues with the victim. Mr Kumar urged Judge Graeme Smith to suspend the sentence.
Judge Graeme Smith said: “The victim was vulnerable. It was a prolonged assault.
“There was a knife. It seems this was a deliberate act to put pressure on your victim in respect of that debt that he owed you.”